1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an image pickup apparatus such as a camera-integrated type VTR.
2. Description of the Related Art
The recent advancement of video apparatuses such as camera-integrated type VTRs, etc., is conspicuous. In the case of the camera-integrated type VTRs, for example, they are now arranged to have many functions including an automatic focusing (abbreviated to AF) function, an automatic exposure (abbreviated to AE) function and other, functions such as zooming at a high magnification zooming, electronic zooming which enlarges images by electronic image processing, etc., and to have improved operability. Meanwhile, an electronic viewfinder (abbreviated to EVF) is regularly used to display various kinds of messages as well as to permit monitoring picked-up images.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically showing by way of example the structure of a camera-integrated type VTR of the above-stated kind. Referring to FIG. 1, an object of shooting is imaged and focused through a lens 59 on the image pickup plane of an image sensor 51 which is a CCD or the like imager. The image is photo-electrically converted by the image sensor 51 and is outputted as a picked-up image signal. The picked-up image signal is sampled and held by a sample-and-hold (abbreviated to S/H) circuit 52. The sampled and held image signal is supplied to a gamma correction and AGC (automatic gain control) circuit 53. The image signal is gamma-corrected and has its gain automatically controlled by the gamma correction and AGC circuit 53. The signal thus processed is supplied to a TV-AF (television-AF) circuit 54 to be converted into an electrical signal indicating the state of blur of the image. More specifically, at the TV-AF circuit 54, a high frequency component of the picked-up image signal is extracted by converting the electrical signal outputted from the gamma correction and AGC circuit 53 into the differentiated waveform the frequency band of which is limited. The high frequency component thus extracted from the picked-up image signal is used as a focus evaluation value. Hence, the larger the peak value of the signal outputted from the TV-AF circuit 54, the closer a state of the lens 59 to an in-focus point. The lens 59 is driven in the direction in which the peak value of the signal outputted from the TV-AF circuit 54 increases. Following this, the analog signal outputted from the TV-AF circuit 54 is supplied to an A/D (analog-to-digital) converter 55 to be converted into a digital signal. The digital signal is supplied to a microcomputer 56. Then, the digital signal processed by the microcomputer 56 is supplied to a D/A (digital-to-analog) converter 57 to be converted into an analog signal. The analog signal is sent to a motor 58 as a driving signal. The motor 58 then shifts the position of the lens 59 toward the in-focus point by driving it in the direction in which the output of the TV-AF circuit 54 increases. Meanwhile, the electrical signal (picked-up image signal) from the photo-electric converting element 51 (image sensor) is sent through the gamma correction and AGC circuit 53 also to a panel 60 which is provided for an EVF and serves as a monitor. The eye 61 of an operator of the camera-integrated type VTR can see through a lens 62 images displayed on the EVF panel 60.
In the camera-integrated type VTR described above, however, an area which is used for focusing within the pickup image plane on the basis of the signal outputted from the TV-AF circuit 54 is fixed. The fixed focusing area has sometimes prevented the operator from focusing on some other area. For example, the camera is arranged to automatically focus a lens on an area A among others while the operator wishes to focus it on another area B, as shown in FIG. 2. The lens is then focused on the area A which has a distant landscape imaged there and not on a person which is a main object of shooting and is imaged in the area B. As a result, the image of the person is obtained only in a blurred state.
This invention is directed to the solution of the problem mentioned above. It is a first object of this invention to provide a camera-integrated type VTR which is capable of automatically bringing the camera into focus on a video image area determined within an image plane according to a visual line of an operator of the VTR.
It is a second object of this invention to provide a camera-integrated VTR which is capable of displaying in an enlarged state an image obtained in a video image area determined within an image plane according to a visual line of an operator of the VTR.
To attain these objects, a camera-integrated type VTR which is arranged as a preferred embodiment of this invention includes photo-electric converting means for converting an optical image of an object of shooting into an electrical signal, an electronic viewfinder, a control part for processing the electrical signal outputted from the photo-electric converting means to obtain a video signal and for sending the video signal to the electronic viewfinder, visual line sensing means for sensing the direction of a visual line of an operator of the VTR, and an optical system arranged to guide reflection light from an eye of the operator to the visual line sensing means. The control part includes focusing means arranged to control a focusing area on the image of the object on the basis of a result of a sensing action of the visual line sensing means.
A camera-integrated type VTR arranged as another embodiment of this invention includes, in addition to the parts described above, extracting means for extracting, from a composite signal composed of a video signal obtained from the image of the object and a reflection light signal formed from the reflection light coming from the eye of the operator, the reflection light signal.
A camera-integrated type VTR which is a further preferred embodiment of this invention is arranged to determine a focusing area according to the direction of the visual line of the eye of the operator, and also to determine the focusing area according to the direction of the visual line of the eye of the operator by extracting, from a composite signal composed of a video signal obtained from the image of the object and a reflection light signal obtained from the reflection light coming from the eye of the operator, the reflection light signal.
An image processing apparatus which is arranged as a still further preferred embodiment of this invention includes monitor means arranged to display an image represented by an image signal inputted, visual line detecting means for detecting the position of a visual line of an operator of the apparatus within a display image plane of the monitor means, and image enlarging means arranged to enlarge an image in a predetermined area corresponding to the position of the visual line detected by the visual line detecting means within the display image plane and to cause the monitor means to display the enlarged image.
The above-stated objects and other objects and features of this invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of embodiments thereof taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.